Immigration DG Denies Data Breach of 34 Million Indonesian Passports

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Immigration Director-General of the Law and Human Rights Ministry, Silmy Karim, rebutted reports of the alleged data breach of 34 million Indonesian passports. He confirmed that based on the investigation, the data leaked and sold online were not currently used by the Immigration Directorate General.

Silmy asserted that the initial examination found that there was no data leak. The investigation was conducted by Immigration Information Systems and Technology Directorate (SISTIK) and Immigration Intelligence Directorate in tandem with the Communications and Information (Kominfo) Ministry and the National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN).

“No Indonesian biometric passport data is leaked. All data of biometric passport and supporting data are safe,” Silmy said in a written statement in Jakarta, Wednesday, July 12, 2023.

The data leaked and traded online, he claimed, were not biometric data such as passport holders’ faces, fingerprints, and others but instead text data that were not utilized by the immigration.

Silmy ensured that his side would continue to enhance existing data security. The Immigration Directorate General would implement ISO 27001-2022 standard that would be issued this July. 

Silmy added that the Indonesian passport data is safely stored at the National Data Center (PDN) of the Kominfo Ministry. Therefore, he appealed to the public not to worry about submitting their personal data for getting a passport. 

Last week, a Twitter account @secgron belonging to a cyber security expert Teguh Aprianto revealed the alleged data breach of 34 million Indonesian passports. He said the hacker leaked sensitive data including the passport number, passport expiration dates, full name, date of birth, and gender. 

Reports of the alleged data breach sparked public concern on social media. Moreover, such cases have been recurring events in the country over the past few years due to poor data security and cyber awareness as highlighted by cybersecurity experts.

ANTARA

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